Method for containing organic debris

ABSTRACT

A method of containing organic debris such as leaves in piles or layers is disclosed. The method comprises the utilization of a chemical composition for coating the generally upward facing leaves in order to bond them together into larger sections. Once the separate leaves are bonded together by the coating, the larger sections provide a protective covering that keeps the wind from disturbing the pile or layer. Further, in some instances the coating may include a biological agent that facilitates the decomposition of the organic debris. In other instances the coating may also include a fertilizer that would be beneficial if the organic debris was used as mulch spread around plants. Also disclosed are methods for applying coating using a distributing device.

This application claims the benefit of Provisional Application Ser. No.60/182,414, filed Feb. 14, 2000.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a method of containing yard debris in piles orlayers.

Every autumn trees drop their leaves and homeowners must remove them orrisk harm to their grass and other plants. Blowing leaves also increaselikelihood of accidents by obscuring hazards and reducing traction.Leaves may also cause blockage of drainage resulting in flooding. Inmany municipalities public works crews drive through the neighborhoodsand vacuum these leaves up for disposal if the homeowner rakes them intopiles at the roadside. Often there are several days of delay between thetime the leaves are piled at the roadside and when the crews picks themup. Blustery weather and the wind from passing cars can redistribute theleaves. The homeowner then has to rake the leaves together in pilesagain. This frustrating process often occurs over and over sometimes twoand three times until the leaves are finally removed.

Many things have been tried to keep the leaves in piles includingcovering them with old bedspreads and tarps. It is frequently adifficult task to spread out the tarps properly over the entire pilebecause they are often too small and the wind blows them off before theycan be weighted down with something. The old bedspreads and tarpscovering the piles also create an ugly eyesore that most homeownerswould rather not have spread out in front of their house.

There have been several inventions to aid homeowners in the collectionand containment of leaves such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,366,949 to Staub, U.S.Pat. No. 5,579,610 to Jackson, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,417,462 to Hensley.All of these inventions have relied on an expensive and cumbersomenetting or fabric covering that has to be spread out and then weightedor staked down. Not only are these inventions difficult to operate butthe covering apparatus creates an eyesore. All the inventions to containleaves and other yard debris heretofore known suffer from a number ofdisadvantages.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Briefly, in accordance with the present invention, an adhesive layer isapplied to the surface of piles or layers of organic debris, such as,for example, autumn leaves. The adhesive layer binds together a layer oforganic debris and holds the pile or layer in place. The adhesive layermay include functional additives such as fertilizer or live biologicalorganisms to increase the rate of decay of the leaves and to increasethe value of the resulting leaf mould.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

This invention is a method for containing organic debris is comprised ofan adhesive layer applied to the outside of a pile or layer of organicdebris. In the preferred embodiment the adhesive layer is biodegradableand non-toxic to plants and animals so that when organic debris isdumped in a landfill or used as mulch it does not pollute the soil orharm plants and animals. For optimum results, the adhesive layer wouldbe made of all natural components, the adhesive would be derived fromanimal and vegetable materials that would also be friendly to theenvironment. The adhesive layer could come in the form of a powder orfoam or as two parts whereby another component would be added such aswater. One embodiment is a mixture by volume of: 2% ground psylliumhusk; 33% denatured alcohol that acts as a suspending agent; and 65%water. The water would either be mixed with the powder in a bottle, in ahose attachment similar to lawn fertilizer sprayers or after the powderhad first been sprinkled on leaves. The adhesive layer could include oneor more additives such as; a biological agent that would accelerate thedecomposing process of the yard debris, a fertilizing agent that wouldbe beneficial to plants if the yard debris was used as a mulch spreadaround plants, a coloring agent so that when a person was distributingit over leaves they would know if the pile had been adequately covered.The adhesive layer, after drying, would be a non-gumming solution thatwould not damage the vacuuming equipment used to remove leaves from theside of the road.

The adhesive layer may be distributed with various equipment, forexample, the distributing device is a pump spray bottle similar to theones used with consumer cleaning solutions. The nozzle on thedistributing device can be adjusted to spray a stream or a wide patternand is non-clogging. In other embodiments the distributing device couldbe a can with wide holes to effectively distribute a powdered version ofcoating, or it could be a can under pressure to distribute an aerosol orfoam version of coating. In other embodiments the distributing devicecould be a garden pump sprayer commonly used by homeowners to distributeherbicides. In other embodiments distributing device could be anindustrial sprayer commonly used to distribute grass seed alonghighways. In still further embodiments the distributing device could bea lawn-fertilizing sprayer that includes a bottle that attaches on agarden hose (nozzle end sprayer such as the Ortho Dial'n Spray®) thatwould mix a powder or liquid concentrate with water as coating wassprayed on leaves. As the adhesive layer dries, leaves and other debrisare bonded together into one piece so that blowing wind and passing carscannot remove the large top layer and redistribute the pile. In otherembodiments, the adhesive could come in the form of a powder that wouldbe first sprinkled over leaves and then moistened with water that wouldbegin the bonding of all loose leaves into one solid top component. Theadhesive could also come with a coloring agent that would show the userthat the entire pile of leaves had been adequately covered. In otherembodiments, the adhesive could be distributed as mentioned abovehowever, as it dries it would form a hard coat over leaves like paint onany surface. The aerodynamic qualities, shape and mass of coating wouldkeep leaves in place in a pile or a few heavy objects like rocks couldbe placed on the pile.

One embodiment of the invention is to apply the adhesive layer toorganic debris to control the movement of the organic debris from wherethe decomposition of the debris is advantageous. For example, autumnleaves may be blown by gas or electric powered leaf blowers from golfturf areas or home lawns into natural area and then treated with anadhesive layer. The adhesive layer would ensure the leaves do not getblown around. The decomposition of the leaves will enhance desirablesoil characteristics (increased water retention, decreased erodability,reduction of weedy under story growth, increased health of desirablevegetation). The advantages of mulching is well know, see, for example,Mulching for a Healthy Landscape, Diane Relf, Virginia Tech PublicationNumber 426-724. This would also result in golfers being able to finderrant golf balls more quickly.

Another embodiment of the invention is to apply an adhesive layer toautumn leaves arranged in a doughnut shape around the base of a tree.The adhesive layer would ensure the leaves do not get blown around. Thedecomposition of the leaves will enhance desirable soil characteristics(increased water retention, decreased erodability, and reduction ofweedy under story growth, with resulting increased health of desirablevegetation. The leaves act as a barrier to plant growth from beneath thedoughnut structure thus making lawn maintenance easier.

Addition of live biological organisms, including but not limited toBacillus sp., Pseudomonas sp., Trichoderma sp., Erwinia sp., Pichia sp.,Candida sp., Cryptococcus sp., Talaromyces sp., P. fumosoreus, B.bassiana, Chaetomium sp., Gliocladium sp., Aureobasidium sp.,Dabaryomyces sp., Exophilia sp., Ampelomyces sp., and Mariannaea sp willresult in faster leaf breakdown accelerating removal of leaves andincrease the benefits of leaf breakdown listed above. BIO•Bplus™ aproduct of GreenReleaf™ by Sybron is a commercially produced example ofa mixture of bacteria specifically selected to speed breakdown oforganic debris in lawns. The biological organisms may also benitrogen-fixing organisms such as certain members of the cyano-bacteriathat would result in natural nitrogen fixation and increased health ofthe plant community. One embodiment of the subject invention is toselect for biological agents that are tolerant to and thus well suitedto a use in the adhesive layer.

Organic debris may be leaves resulting from autumn or other seasonalleaf fall, leaves and other yard debris (leaves, flowers, stems, fruits)resulting from yard activities. Yard activities may be, for example,cultivation, cutting, herbicide application, or withholding ofirrigation water.

The adhesive may contain one or more constituents such as surface-activeagents and other ingredients. As examples for a surface-active agent,alkylsulfate esters, alkylsulfates, alkylarylethers and theirpolyoxyethylenes, polyethyleneglycols, polyhydric alcohol esters, andsugar alcohol derivatives can be given. As examples for otheringredients for the adhesive, a sticking agent and a dispersant, such ascasein, gelatin, polysaccharides including starch, gum arabic, cellulosederivatives and alginic acid, lignin derivatives, bentonite andsynthetic aqueous polymers including polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinylpyrrolidone and polyacrylic acid, and a stabilizer, such as PAP (acidicisopropyl phosphate), BHT (2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-methylphenol), BHA(2-/3-tert-butyl-4-methoxyphenol), vegetable oils, mineral oils, fattyacids and fatty acid esters, can be given. Examples of adhesives andbinding agents are Agar, Alginates, Amine Oxides, CocamidopropylHydroxysultaine, Coco Amido Betaine, Coconut Diethanolamide, CornStarch, Cotton fibres, Dextrin, Diatomaceous Earth, DihydroxyethylTallow Glycinate, Ethylcellulose, Gellan Gum, Guar, Hydroxy MethylCellulose, Hydroxyethyl Cellulose, Hydroxypropylmethylcellulose, LauricDiethanolamide, Methylcellulose, Polyvinyl Alcohol, Primary AlcoholEthoxylates, Sodium Carboxymethylcellulose, Xanthan Gum.

The adhesive layer may include a plant fertilizer containing the plantmacronutrients Nitrogen, Potassium and Phosphorus or a completefertilizer including the macro and micro plant nutrients as exemplifiedby Miracle Gro® (The Scotts Company) or may be customized for specificapplications.

The following examples illustrate the practice of the present inventionand should not be construed as limiting its scope.

EXAMPLE 1

A solution was made with: 2% psyllium husk; 33% denatured alcohol; and65% water. This created a solution with an adequately high solid contentof the polymer and a low viscosity enabling it to be sprayed in a widepattern by a common pump bottle sprayer found with consumer cleaningproducts. Using other concentrations of the ingredients in otherexperiments, the solution was found to have either too high of aviscosity to be sprayed through the pump sprayer or too littleconcentration of the polymer to adequately hold the leaves together.

Using the solution with the ratio noted above and a common pump bottlesprayer, an even layer was sprayed on a small pile of maple leaves. Inapproximately two hours the solution had dried and a small house fan wasdirected on the pile of leaves at various speeds. The dried layer of thesolution kept the leave from being blown out of the pile no matter whatspeed the fan was turned on.

EXAMPLE 2

A second experiment was conducted using a solution of: 75% polyvinylacetate; and 25% water. Again using these ingredients in otherexperiments there was the same problem as noted above in finding aproper solution ratio that would hold the leaves in place and that couldalso be distributed by using a pump bottle sprayer.

Using the solution with the ratio of 75% polyvinyl acetate and 25%water, a thorough layer was sprayed on another pile of maple leaves.Once the solution had dried in approximately two hours a house fan waspointed at the leaves. Again this dried solution kept the leaves in oneplace.

EXAMPLE 3

The adhesive solution of example 1. is amended with Miracle Gro™ aproduct of The Scotts Company. Application to naturally dehisced mapleleaves in a natural area results in a lower rate of leaf redistributionand a faster rate of decay than untreated leaves. Rate of leaf decay ismeasured by enclosing treated or untreated leaves in bags made ofplastic window screen material, putting bags in a natural area under themaple trees and measuring the dry weight of leaf material in the spring.The treated leaves weigh significantly less than the untreated.

EXAMPLE 4

The adhesive solution of example 1 is amended with the recommended ratesof BIO•Bplus™ a product of GreenReleaf™ by Sybron. Application tonaturally dehisced maple leaves in a natural area results in a lowerrate of leaf redistribution and a faster rate of decay than untreatedleaves. The data are collected as in Example 3.

It should be understood that the examples and embodiments describedherein are for illustrative purposes only and that various modificationsor changes in light thereof will be suggested to persons skilled in theart and are to be included within the spirit and purview of thisapplication and the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:
 1. A method for substantially containing fallen leavesgathered in a pile at a temporary collection site for subsequentremoval, said method comprising the step of distributing an adhesiveover a top surface of the leaf pile, the adhesive acting to bind anumber of the leaves together in a manner sufficient to substantiallycontain the leaves in the gathered pile, and after distributing theadhesive over the gathered leaf pile, removing the leaves from thetemporary collection site.
 2. A method according to claim 1, wherein thestep of distributing the adhesive comprises using a handheld sprayer tospray an adhesive solution over the top surface of the leaf pile.
 3. Amethod according to claim 1, wherein the step of distributing theadhesive comprises sprinkling a dry adhesive powder over the top surfaceof the leaf pile, and then wetting the power to activate the adhesive.4. A method for substantially containing fallen leaves gathered in apile at a temporary collection site for subsequent removal, said methodcomprising the steps of: (a) providing an adhesive solution adapted forbeing applied to the leaf pile in a liquid state using a handheld spraydevice; and (b) distributing the adhesive solution from the handheldspray device over a top surface of the leaf pile, whereby the adhesivesolution acts to bind a number of the leaves together in a mannersufficient to substantially contain the leaves in the gathered pile; and(c) after distributing the adhesive over the gathered leaf pile,removing the leaves from the temporary collection site.
 5. A methodaccording to claim 4, wherein the adhesive solution comprises a coloringagent.
 6. A method according to claim 4, wherein the adhesive solutioncomprises a fertilizing agent.
 7. A method according to claim 4, whereinthe handheld sprayer comprises a handheld pump sprayer with anadjustable spray nozzle.
 8. A method according to claim 4, wherein thehandheld sprayer comprises a hose-end attachment sprayer adapted forbeing attached to a free end of a garden hose.